North Adams Group Breaks Ground For Lake ProjectBy Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
12:42PM / Sunday, April 08, 2012 | |
 William St. Pierre, left, George Forgea, Deborah Forgea, Paul Corriveau, Nancy Bullet and Peg Clermont. St. Pierre, Corriveau and Bullett are members of the Windsor Lake Recreation Commission; George Forgea is the chairman.
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Windsor Lake Recreation Commission member William St. Pierre brought equipment to make the job easier.
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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Windsor Lake entrance is getting a makeover to reflect some of the changes going on at the recreation area.
Volunteers were out on a blustery Saturday morning digging up sod and prepping the ground for a native plant garden and new sign to better point visitors in the direction of the city's public beach and Historic Valley Campground.
"We want it to complement what the city is doing with the infrastructure ... It's a visible way to show things are happening here," said Deborah Forgea, who's spearheading the project. The brown rustic sign that's been there since the late 1960s was fine at the time, but she said, "We want the sign and entrance to reflect that we're coming into the 21st century."
New septic is being run into the campground, the bathrooms have been overhauled and the area spiffed up. A new playground area and volleyball court are being put in and there are future plans for a new concession at the lake. The old concession will get a new coat of paint this coming Community Service Day on May 5.
The volunteers were a little ahead of schedule on Saturday to take advantage of a visit by site designer Peg Clermont and her husband, Bill, from Franklin.
Clermont, originally from North Adams, said the garden will take advantage of native plants to creative an environmentally friendly garden that will be good to the birds and bees and highlight the area. It will include dogwood, azalea and coneflowers.
"It will make [the entrance] highly visible and highly accessible," said the self-taught landscape designer.
The new, larger sign will feature Mount Greylock.
The Windsor Lake Greenspace Improvement Project is a Develop North Adams initiative that is being funded through donations and grants. The Windsor Lake Recreation Commission approved the project in February and several of the commission members were volunteering on Saturday.
"If we get grants, we'll order the plants; if not we'll look for funding," said Forgea. "We'll find a way."
Donations for the project can be sent to Develop North Adams Inc., PO Box 746, North Adams, MA 01247, ATTN: Windsor Lake Greenspace Improvement Project.
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